Townsend Letter for Doctors and Patients back issues from August 2004:
Letter from the publisher.
Aug 01, 2004; ... On a class reunion trip this summer I was saddened to learn that a classmate's brother died following a heart attack. A 52 year-old man is not unusual as a victim of premature death from coronary artery disease. Sedentary lifestyles, overly rich diets, highly stressful careers and family ...
Obituary -- Jim Ventresco, DO.(Obituary)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Jim Ventresco, DO died April 18th, when the small airplane he was piloting crashed. The engine was heard to sputter just prior to his landing and the plane did not reach the runway. Jim was a founding member of ICIM, then known as the Great Lakes Association of Clinical ...
Free booklet on heart health tips to stop the #1 killer of women.(Bio-Aging Inc. )
Aug 01, 2004 ... Bio-Aging, Inc. has issued a booklet on Women's Heart Health. The booklet gives helpful updates on heart disease prevention along with personal stories from women who've been there, and advice from top doctors and heart disease experts. The booklet--available to the public and health ...
Doctor's statement in Mayo Clinic Proceedings reveals dark side of low-carb diets.
Aug 01, 2004 ... In its March issue, the Mayo Clinic Proceedings published a letter explaining that the reason low-carb dieters often lose weight and sometimes show improvements in their cholesterol, blood sugars, and blood pressures is because they are, in essence, sickened by the diet. John McDougall, ...
New report confirms aspirin's cardioprotective benefits far outweigh risks in wide array of patients.
Aug 01, 2004 ... A paper published in the April issue of Cardiovascular Reviews & Reports demonstrates that the benefits of aspirin outweigh the risks when used for prevention of myocardial infarction (heart attack) in patients determined to be at sufficient risk. This conclusion is based on two ...
NIH launches large clinical trial on EDTA chelation therapy for coronary artery disease.(National Institutes of Health)(ethylene diamine tetra-acetic acid)
Aug 01, 2004 ... The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), components of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), have launched the first large-scale clinical trial to determine the safety and efficacy of EDTA chelation ...
ConsumerLab.com finds discrepancies in strength of CoQ10 supplements.(coenzyme Q10)
Aug 01, 2004 ... ConsumerLab.com has announced that among the coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) supplements it recently tested there was no detectable CoQ10 in one product, another had only 71% of its claimed amount, while a third exceeded its claimed amount by 75%. Such variations are of medical concern since CoQ10 is ...
The causal link between infectious diseases and heart disease.
Aug 01, 2004; ... Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the US and is projected to be the leading cause of disability in the world by 2020. Researchers from Johns Hopkins University studied 900 heart disease patients and found that the more infectious agents patients tested positive for, the more ...
CHRF News File.(Collaboration for Healthcare Renewal Foundation )
Aug 01, 2004 ... The CHRF News Files, a product of the Collaboration for Healthcare Renewal Foundation (CHRF), reports on collaborative initiatives and business developments of relevance to the emerging integrative medicine industry. Your receipt of the News Files is made possible through a grant from the ...
Surgeons vs. cardiologists.(Shorts)
Aug 01, 2004; ... New technologies and economic demands are creating intense competition between cardiac surgeons and cardiologists. Cardiac surgeons rely on referrals from cardiologists for most of their clients; but new technologies, such as angioplasty balloons and stents that can hold arteries open, let ...
Hypercholesterolemia & hormones.(Shorts)(Brief Article)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Life Extension (September 2003) published an article by Sergey A. Dzugan, PhD, and R. Arnold Smith, MD, that proposes that hypercholesterolemia is the result of a multihormone deficiency. The body uses cholesterol as a basic component of cell membranes, bile acids, vitamin D3, and as the ...
HRT & heart disease.(research report)
Aug 01, 2004; ... When scientists began examining data from the Women's Health Initiative (a large federal study on hormone therapy) in July 2002, they were dismayed to find an unexpected increase in heart disease among women taking Prempro, a hormone preparation made by Wyeth. The Women's Health Initiative ...
Low-dose coumadin.(anticoagulants )
Aug 01, 2004; ... Coumadin (warfarin) is a blood thinner that doctors have used for 50 years to prevent blood clots in the legs of patients susceptible to venous thrombosis. Although it does prevent potentially fatal blood clots, the drug also leads to an increased risk of hemorrhagic stroke and other ...
Magnesium & blood pressure.(Shorts)(Brief Article)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Research has shown that blood pressure is linked to the calcium-activated potassium channels in the membranes of smooth muscle cells. When these microscopic ion channels open, the smooth muscles that control blood vessel diameter relax and blood pressure decreases. An article in Nature (22 ...
Policosanol.(Anticholesteremic agents)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Policosanol (pronounced polly-KOH-san-all) is a natural compound, found in sugar-cane wax, that Cuban doctors have used for decades to prevent and treat heart disease. In Basic Health Publications User's Guide to Policosanol & Other Natural Ways to Lower Cholesterol, Mark Stengler, ND, ...
Phenylpropanolamine & strokes.(research report)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Drug manufacturers and the FDA knew, for decades, that phenylpropanolamine (PPA), the active ingredient used in over-the-counter decongestants and diet aids, could cause hemorrhagic stroke. A 1982 FDA report stated that PPA had "the ability to cause cardiovascular effects, cerebral ...
Lipid metabolism & dioxin.(research report)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Disturbances in lipid metabolism and stenosis (narrowing) of carotid arteries are among the disorders caused by occupational exposure to 2,3,7,8-tetrachlordibenzo-p-dioxin (2,3,7,8-TCDD), according to an abstract presented at the 29th Congress on Occupational and Environmental Health in ...
Vaccine-induced heart problems.(Smallpox vaccinations and anthrax vaccine)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Smallpox vaccinations have been linked to serious heart problems. Seventy-seven of over 615,000 (1.25%), according to the Pentagon, have developed myopericarditis, an inflammation of the sac around the heart. The Centers for Disease Control say that 21 of the 39,500 (5.3%) US medical ...
ASCO meeting.(The War on Cancer)(American Society for Clinical Oncology)
Aug 01, 2004; ... I have just returned from the 40th annual meeting of the American Society for Clinical Oncology (ASCO). The meeting coincided with my 30th anniversary in the cancer field, as I was hired as science writer at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center on June 3, 1974. And so this trip was a ...
Atherosclerosis: an environmental disease impacted by genetics.(Literature Review & Commentary)
Aug 01, 2004; ... The enzyme 5-lipoxygenase catalyzes the conversion of arachidonic acid to leukotrienes, which are involved in the inflammatory process. Chronic inflammation is believed to play an important role in the development of atherosclerosis. In the present study, 5-lipoxygenase genotypes, ...
Does vitamin E cause heart failure?(Literature Review & Commentary)
Aug 01, 2004; ... In the Heart Outcomes Prevention Evaluation (HOPE) study, 9,541 patients with cardiovascular disease or diabetes, plus one other cardiovascular risk factor, were randomly assigned to receive, in double-blind fashion, 400 IU/day of vitamin E (RRR-alpha-tocopheryl acetate) or placebo, and ...
Vitamin D deficiency related to diabetes and insulin resistance.(Literature Review & Commentary)(Brief Article)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Two recent studies have shown that vitamin D deficiency may be a contributing factor in some cases of diabetes and/or metabolic syndrome (insulin resistance). In a study of 126 healthy volunteers (mean age 26 years) with normal glucose tolerance, there was a significant positive ...
Lycopene for adjunctive treatment of prostate cancer.(Literature Review & Commentary)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Fifty-four patients with metastatic prostate cancer (M1b or D2) were randomly assigned to receive orchiectomy alone (control group) or orchiectomy plus lycopene, 2 mg twice a day. After six months the mean prostate-specific antigen (PSA) level was 65% lower in the lycopene group than in ...
Xylitol chewing gum for prevention of dental caries.(Literature Review & Commentary)(Brief Article)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Nine hundred twenty-one children (aged 3-6 years) attending daycare centers in Finland were randomly assigned to receive xylitol chewing gum (one piece, three times a day, each chewed for 5-10 minutes, for a total of 2.5 g/day of xylitol) or to brush their teeth after lunch. The respective ...
Breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, sup like a pauper.(Literature Review & Commentary)(Brief Article)
Aug 01, 2004; ... In a study of 375 males and 492 females who completed seven-day diet diaries, the proportion of the daily energy ingested in the morning was negatively correlated with total daily energy intake (r = -0.13; p < 0.01), whereas the proportion ingested late in the evening was positively ...
Vitamins C and E effective against endometriosis pain.(Literature Review & Commentary)(Brief Article)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Fifty-nine women (aged 19-41 years) with pelvic pain and a history of endometriosis and/or infertility received either a placebo (n = 13) or a combination of vitamin E (1,200 IU/day) and vitamin C (1,000 mg/day) (n = 46) for two months. It was not specified whether the treatment allocation ...
Oral vitamin K prophylaxis is sufficient for most babies.(Literature Review & Commentary)
Aug 01, 2004; ... The effect of vitamin K1 prophylaxis was assessed in 507,850 babies born in Denmark from November 1992 to June 2000. Of these, 78% (about 396,000) received oral and 22% received intramuscular (IM) prophylaxis. The oral regimen used was 2 mg given at birth, followed by 1 mg once a week ...
Whole food therapeutics and lifestyle change in the treatment of cardiovascular disease in men.(Therapeutic Nutrition)
Aug 01, 2004; ... "Functional foods," "nutraceuticals," "designer foods" and "medicinal foods" are terms that describe foods, and key ingredients isolated from foods, that have non-nutritive or tertiary functional properties. Researchers, healthcare practitioners, laypersons, and the popular media use these ...
Coronary artery disease (CAD) and Chinese medicine.(Chinese Medicine Update)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Keywords: Chinese medicine, Chinese herbal medicine, cardiology, coronary artery disease, CAD ********** In Chinese medicine, depending on the main presenting manifestations, coronary artery disease is traditionally categorized as chest impediment (xiong bi), chest ...
Healing hearts with homeopathy.(Healing with Homeopathy)
Aug 01, 2004; ... The Top Ten Medicines for Cardiac Care [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] When it comes to heart disease, modern homeopaths, except for a few, have little experience with cardiac treatment, leaving the field mainly to the conventional cardiologists. The homeopathic literature and ...
Depression worsens outlook in coronary heart disease patients.(Psychoneuroimmunoendocrinology Review and Commentary)
Aug 01, 2004; ... In 1,024 adults with stable coronary artery disease, after all adjustments, depression (Patient Health Questionnaire score [greater than or equal to]10) was strongly associated with an odds ratio of 1.8 for greater self-rated symptom burden (p=0.002), 3.1 for greater physical limitation ...
Depression and myocardial infarction.(Psychoneuroimmunoendocrinology Review and Commentary)(Brief Article)
Aug 01, 2004; ... In 896 survivors of acute myocardial infarction, odds ratio for one-year mortality was 3.29 in depressed women (95% CI 1.02-10.29) vs. non-depressed women; for men it was 3.05 (95% CI 1.29-7.17). All received standard care. Control for other multivariate predictors of mortality (age, ...
Depression and stroke.(Psychoneuroimmunoendocrinology Review and Commentary)(Brief Article)
Aug 01, 2004; ... 10,300 men and women from Massachusetts, Connecticut and Iowa were followed from 1982 through 1988 as part of the EPESE trials. Incidence of stroke was 2.3-2.7-fold higher in most subgroups with high depression vs. their non-depressed counterparts, after adjustment for site, age, gender ...
Hopelessness and carotid atherosclerosis.(Psychoneuroimmunoendocrinology Review and Commentary)(Brief Article)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Nine hundred forty-two men from the Kuopio, Finland, Study were stratified to low-moderate or high hopelessness groups based on interview and a 5-point Likert scale. Over 4 years, ultrasound-demonstrated carotid intimal atherosclerotic thickening advanced 19.2% more in the high ...
Anger and coronary artery disease.(Psychoneuroimmunoendocrinology Review and Commentary)(Brief Article)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Among 12,986 black and white men and women enrolled in the Atherosclerosis Risk In Communities study, adjusted risks for combined CAD events (acute myocardial infarction/fatal coronary artery disease, silent MI, or cardiac revascularization procedures) and for "hard" events (AMI/fatal CAD) ...
Anger and premature coronary artery disease.(Psychoneuroimmunoendocrinology Review and Commentary)(Brief Article)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Anger can trigger myocardial ischemia and may be an independent risk factor for coronary artery disease. In 1,055 men, the adjusted median 38-year risk for premature cardiovascular disease in men <55 with the highest of 3 levels of baseline anger in medical school (expressed or concealed ...
Anger and myocardial infarction.(Psychoneuroimmunoendocrinology Review and Commentary)(Brief Article)
Aug 01, 2004; ... 1,623 patients including 501 women were interviewed within 4 days of having an MI, obtaining a history of the frequency of experiencing anger in the previous year and the intensity and timing of anger in the 26 hours prior to infarction. Patients completed the Onset Anger Scale and the ...
Aspects of anxiety and anger in regard to coronary artery disease.(Psychoneuroimmunoendocrinology Review and Commentary)(Brief Article)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Seven aspects of anxiety and anger reactions to stress are significantly related to coronary artery disease: the potential for hostility; becoming angry [greater than or equal to]1 times/wk; expressing anger; irritability at waiting in line; explosive voice; vigorous expression; and ...
Anger and hypertension.(Psychoneuroimmunoendocrinology Review and Commentary)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Of 540 normotensive middle-aged eastern Finnish men completing the Spielberger Anger Expression and Repression Scales at baseline, 104 (19.4%) were hypertensive (SBP [greater than or equal to]165 mmHg and/or DBP [greater than or equal to]95 mmHg) 4 years later. Each 1-point increase in ...
Grief and myocardial infarction.(Psychoneuroimmunoendocrinology Review and Commentary)(Brief Article)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Twelve hundred men and 540 women were interviewed within a week after an acute MI. A significant relationship to the antecedent death of a loved one (including spouse, sibling, parent, child, grandchild, grandparent, in-law, other close relatives or close friends) was found in the data ....
Psychological factors in cardiovascular disease.(Psychoneuroimmunoendocrinology Review and Commentary)
Aug 01, 2004; ... The authors review the clear and convincing evidence that psychosocial factors contribute significantly to coronary disease as evidenced by data relating risk to (1) depression, (2) anxiety, (3) personality factors and character traits, (4) social isolation, and (5) chronic life stress ....
Relaxation training and coronary artery disease.(Psychoneuroimmunoendocrinology Review and Commentary)(Brief Article)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Of 192 men and women aged 35-64 identified as having two or more of the following risk factors: blood pressure [greater than or equal to]140/90 mmHg, cholesterol [greater than or equal to] 6.3 mmol/l (244 mg/dl), and current smoking habit [greater than or equal to]10 cigarettes a day, ...
Social isolation and coronary artery disease.(Psychoneuroimmunoendocrinology Review and Commentary)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Social isolation has been linked to poor survival in patients with coronary artery disease. In 430 ischemic heart disease patients, 4-year relative risk for cardiac death was 2.4 (p=.001) and risk for death from any cause was 2.1 in those with [less than or equal to]3 people in their ...
Stress and myocardial infarction.(Psychoneuroimmunoendocrinology Review and Commentary)(Brief Article)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Out-patient sudden cardiac deaths in 1983 in Massachusetts were disproportionately represented on Mondays 7-11:00 a.m. (p<.001). Muller JE et al. Circadian variation in ...
Stress management and myocardial ischemia.(Psychoneuroimmunoendocrinology Review and Commentary)
Aug 01, 2004; ... One hundred seven patients with coronary artery disease and ischemia on stress testing were randomly assigned to a 38-month program of stress management training and compared to a usual care control group. The training consisted of sixteen 1.5-hour weekly sessions of cognitive ...
Questions about benefits of psychosocial intervention.(Psychoneuroimmunoendocrinology Review and Commentary)(after myocardial infarction)
Aug 01, 2004; ... In 2,481 heart patients (1,084 women, 1,397 men) enrolled within 28 days after acute myocardial infarction, those found to be depressed (Hamilton Revised Scale for Depression) and having low perceived social support (ESSI scale) were randomly allocated to usual medical care or usual care ...
Phytotherapy for angina.(Phytotherapy Review & Commentary)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Estimates of the number of people in the United States suffering from angina pectoris vary between around 6 and 16.6 million. (1,2) Angina is typically a result of coronary artery disease, which remains one of the principal causes of disease worldwide. (3) [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ...
Correction notice.(Correction Notice)
Aug 01, 2004 ... We apologize for omitting the guest author's name from Phytotherapy Review & Commentary ...
Activation of the 4th kidney and beyond.(Colonic Chronicles Presents ...)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Welcome to Alimentary School As Dr. Dorman so ably wrote in the last issue (1) on the subject of colonics, I would like to take the opportunity to further the depth of this subject in this current issue drawing from both my experience as an intestinal oxidative therapist and my ...
Respiratory-to-fermentative (RTF) shift in ATP production in chronic energy deficit states.(Oxygen Homeostasis)(adenosine triphosphate)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Syndromes of persistent and debilitating fatigue--fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, persistent fatigue following chemotherapy for malignant disorders, and others--may be properly designated "chronic energy deficit states." There is an enormous body of literature concerning clinical ...
Cardiovascular disease: selected treatment options.(Naturopathic Perspectives)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Cardiovascular disease is perhaps one of the most widespread health problems in recent history. Not only localized to the United States, heart disease afflicts people around the world, chiefly living in modernized countries. A large amount of research, public education, and clearly ...
Emanuel Revici, MD: efforts to publish the clinical findings of a pioneer in lipid-based cancer therapy--Part 1.(Obituary)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Dr. Emanuel Revici died during his 102nd year on January 9, 1998, after a career that bridged seven decades in the history of modern medicine. Since the 1980s, mainstream research has independently confirmed a number of his therapeutic breakthroughs. He was the first physician ...
Cuba's green revolution: the balm to the Achilles heel of Castro's Revolution.
Aug 01, 2004; ... Looking out across the organic medicinal herb farm in the Pinar del Rio province of Cuba, I am intoxicated by the scent from endless rows of German chamomile, calendula, and Japanese mint. This state-run 200-acre organic farm, known as the "Vinca Provincial Plantes Medicinal," grows ...
Does the growth rate of aerobic bacterial cells in organic plant foods reflect the health potential of that food in human cells?
Aug 01, 2004; ... Introduction Organic-grown produce spoils faster than do the same food sources grown with pesticide treatment. As food or airborne aerobic bacteria multiply in produce, spoilage occurs proportionate to the rate of the bacterial proliferation supported by the deteriorating food ...
Dr. Ba Hoang's herbal treatment for ITP: --One story--.(Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura)
Aug 01, 2004; ... My daughter Phoebe developed chronic Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura, or ITP, when she was 15. After receiving medical treatment that did not alleviate her condition and caused side effects, she took an herbal therapy, which increased and stabilized her blood platelet count and ...
Transient global amnesia: a side effect of "statin" treatment.
Aug 01, 2004; ... Try to imagine the complete inability to formulate new memory. This condition is known as transient global amnesia, now known to be associated with "statin" drug use for lowering cholesterol. My first encounter occurred six weeks after my annual astronaut physical at Johnson Space Center ....
The euglycaemic status and infections: a step to real immunity.
Aug 01, 2004; ... This is a small tribute to great scientists virtually unknown in today's medical schools and homeopathic organizations. They deserve recognition for their understanding of the real causes of acute and chronic diseases and therefore of the correct approach to prevent and cure them. ...
Classic and everyday children's illnesses in practice.
Aug 01, 2004; ... Preface I came to bioresonance therapy 18 years ago and it soon took on a leading role in my practice and is, as many of you know, the main focus of therapy alongside holistic diagnosis. A large proportion of my patients are children and it is these I should like to ...
The health benefits of aged garlic extract.
Aug 01, 2004; ... Garlic ranks highly among foods that help prevent disease, largely due to its high content of organosulfur compounds and antioxidant activity. Fresh garlic, however, is not for everyone; it can cause indigestion and its pungent odor, that lingers on the breath and skin, is a social ...
Treating Lyme disease.(Letters to the Editor)(Letter to the Editor)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Editor: My close friend's husband has been diagnosed with Lyme disease. I hope you won't mind printing this in your letters section so that alternative practitioners across the globe may volunteer their suggestions and comments. Your help is so appreciated! Her ...
Benfotiamine and allithiamine should be differentiated.(Letters to the Editor)(Letter to the Editor)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Editor: I have to object to the advertisement for Benfotiamine on page 132 of your June issue, since the statements designed to promote it are inaccurate. I wish to put the record straight concerning the derivatives of thiamine that have been extremely well studied in Japan ....
Reply to Dr. Lonsdale.(Letters to the Editor)(Letter to the Editor)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Editor: I read with attention Dr. Derrick Lonsdale's letter taking exception to certain statements made in recent advertisements for AOR's pharmaceutical-grade Benfotiamine supplement. While Dr. Lonsdale deserves our respect for his many years of advocacy of the benefits of the ...
The cure for heart disease: theory, history and treatment.(Letters to the Editor)(Letter to the Editor)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Editor: The theory that Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) is related to a deficiency of ascorbic acid (vitamin C) was first proposed by the Canadian physician G. C. Willis in 1953. Willis found that atherosclerotic plaques form over vitamin-C-starved vascular tissues in both guinea ...
My favorite new (old) therapy.(Letters to the Editor)(Letter to the Editor)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Editor: Each few years I find myself like David Letterman, discussing my top ten list of highly effective new therapies I have integrated into my practice. These have become the approaches in my own clinical experience, which have separated themselves from the pack of otherwise ...
Enough vitamin B6 reduces heart attacks by 70%.(Letters to the Editor)(Letter to the Editor)
Aug 01, 2004; ... Editor: My 1995 article "Vitamin B6: The Overlooked Key to Preventing Heart Attacks," in the peer reviewed Journal of Applied Nutrition (1) elaborates mechanisms, including inflammation and thrombosis (catastrophic clotting) that are gaining increased recognition as factors in ...